Strategy for Modelling Plant Growth

Calculation of the total nitrate uptake of lettuce (Lactuca sativa L.) by use of a mathematical model to simulate nitrate inflow

“…For modelling W, and RGR, the Feldmann-function was used as described by Bazlen (1985), because it has a great flexibility using only three parameters (Liebig and Lederle, 1985). The function was extended by the shoot weight at transplantation into nutrient solution (start weight, WO) and was related to the sum of daily mean temperatures (T,) instead of time, because of the better relationship to the measured plant growth of the different temperature treatments.…”

Validation of a Computer Model for a Single-truss Tomato Cropping System

“…The model began to fail when PPF was no longer a limiting factor and high temperatures were encountered (crops 15-18). Again, historical light values differed from the measured values, underscoring the difficulty associated with long-term environmental forecast (8).…”

“…The data obtained in this study also indicate that the rate of fruit development did not remain constant throughout the year, as initially assumed in the model. While fruit development occurred over a 45-day period on average, as assumed in the model, the actual values ranged from *40 days in Spring 1987 (crops 14-21) to 50 days, on average, in Fall 1986 (crops [3][4][5][6][7][8][9][10][11][12]. Total PPF during fruit development and the observed seasonal variation in the rate of fruit development were indeed poorly correlated (r2 = 0.58), as previously determined (11).…”

“…Models used for planning are often simple models that use the relationship between dominant environmental factors and plant response to predict future responses under similar environmental conditions. In the greenhouse, the dominant environmental factor is most often solar radiation (8).…”